Reimagining Where We Live - Advocates offer unique insights in aged care accommodation design competition

Earlier this year, six Dementia Advocates travelled to Canberra to provide their living experience expertise in the aged care accommodation design competition. 

The Reimagining Where We Live competition invited architects and designers to use the draft National Aged Care Design Principles and Guidelines to design innovative aged care homes that are welcoming, safe, accessible and dementia-friendly. 

Three Advocates were advisers to the jury looking at designs in the urban metro category and another three Advocates were advisers to the jury for the regional town category.

The jury report and winning entries are available for viewing on the competition website.

This competition provided a platform for the creation of case studies and best practice examples of good design before the introduction of the new Residential Aged Care Accommodation Framework from 1 July 2024. 

The Principles and Guidelines were developed in response to recommendation 45 of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety Final Report.

Dementia Australia and the Department of Health and Aged Care acknowledges the valuable contribution the Dementia Advocate Advisers made to this important project. 

Thank you to Mithrani Mahadeva, Gwenda Darling, Steve Grady, Dennis Frost, Ann Pietsch and Pam Eade for sharing your expertise and insights during the competition. 

We would also like to thank and acknowledge all the Dementia Advocates who were involved in the initial focus groups back in December 2022 to January 2023. 

Your involvement directly influenced the development of the new Residential Aged Accommodation Framework.